Protecting and saving water

Partnership Overview Who we are Our accomplishments Our challenges Our priorities

Established to address water quality water quantity 63 Members - Federal Agencies State Agencies Local Government Conservation Districts Agricultural Groups State Universities Industry Associations Environmental Groups Who We Are

Involve everyone in the solution Provide incentives to use BMPs BMP Research to verify BMPs work Develop implementation assurance programs BMP Follow-up Provide supporting education Recognize participants Farmers (CARES) Homeowners (FY&N) Regional and Farm water quality monitoring Partnership Approach

Dairy BMPs Lined Waste Storage Solid Separator Systems Manure Application Waste Collection

Litter Storage Dead Bird Composter Litter Application

Manage Fertilizers NRCS Conservation PracticesNRCS Conservation Practices Split ApplicationsSplit Applications Proper PlacementProper Placement Recommended Rates and TimingRecommended Rates and Timing Controlled Release FertilizersControlled Release Fertilizers Crop Program

325+Irrigation systems improved Estimated 1 Billion gallons water saved

BMP Participation Map Farmer Participation Dairy 90%, Poultry 99%, Crop 75% - Crop manual being implemented on 145,000+ acres

BMP Tools & Equipment

Estimated Nitrogen Reduction from Farms Using Crop Tools 15 farms participating in the Progressive Farms program PF Data shows 50 lbs. N/acre reduction 162 Crop farms District-wide using tools on 103,563 acres At 50 lbs N/acre reduction – Estimated reduction in lbs of N applied per year 5,178,150 (2,589 tons)

39% Reduction

Research and models show farms using BMPs** Have the potential to reduce Nitrate-N to ground water Up to 77% on poultry & dairy operations Up to 90% on dairy spray fields Up to 50% on crop farms **FDEP Literature Review 2007 Research Document BMPs Work

Overall Dairy BMP Implementation Assurance

Overall Poultry BMP Implementation Assurance Partial Compliance

BMP Implementation Assurance

Farmer Education Many farmer meetings have been held over the last ten years

CARES Program 328 farmers

Florida Friendly Landscaping

Water Quality Trends Regional Network Designed to evaluate trends for ground water, springs, and rivers Summary Showed decreasing, increasing, & no trends Most likely influenced by climatic events, water age, & BMP efforts Recommended more time is needed

Springshed Protection

Our Challenges State Funding – Cost Share – Research Farmer O&M long term Documenting long term results Complexity of our system

Our Priorities Working one-on-one with farmers Recruit new farmers BMP operation & maintenance Water quality Water conservation Education/outreach Implementation Assurance

Keys To Our Success Our leadership Our approach Funding Our people

Questions?